The Coachella Occurrence
by MollyBananahammock
Summary: Leonard and Penny go to Coachella. Leonard gets heat-stroke. That is all. Fluffy little one shot because I miss writing these guys.


**A/N: Well hellooooo beautiful people. The Lenny bug has really caught me in its wings recently, probably because they've just been so damn cute lately, and i had this urge to write some more Lenny fluff. This is a one shot and yeah, its pure sweet. My (belated) Valentines day gift t you all, I guess! **

"_There's my guy!"_

"_You sound like my wife just before she asked me to go to Coachella."_

* * *

"There you are! Why didn't you answer your phone? And why are you lying on the ground?"

Leonard opened an eye to see Penny towering over him, looking at him with a mixture of anger and confusion, and went to sit up but immediately regretted his decision when his head started to spin and his stomach started to churn, and lay back down.

"Oh, I must have left it back at the tent. Sorry."

"Why are you out here?" Penny sat down on the grass beside him, "I thought you were going to stay in the tent?"

"I was, but cabin fever started to kick in and I had to get out."

When Penny had sold him the idea of coming to Coachella with her, this was not how he expected the weekend would end up - with a fever, nausea, and a face like a ripe tomato. Turns out he just wasn't built for the music festival life.

Okay, that wasn't a particularly _shocking_ development, but Leonard was still embarrassed and annoyed by it. Sheldon had told him it was a bad idea countless times before they'd gone, spelling out to him each and every way in which Leonard just wasn't cut out for a weekend of sun, sand, music and alcohol, but there was no way he was letting that stop him. In fact, it only fuelled his desire to go, determined to prove him wrong.

This was supposed to have been a fun weekend away for the two of them. Time away alone together without the others bothering them, particularly Sheldon and Amy who were in full bride/groom-zilla mode and driving both of them a little crazy. They needed this break. Hell, they _deserved_ this break, and for the most part it _had_ been fun, that had to be said. While he didn't really know any of the artists or bands he was going to watch, or even particularly enjoy the music, he _had_ enjoyed the atmosphere within the crowd. The pure elation of it. Everyone jumping around and dancing and having the time of their lives, he'd gotten sucked into that. He sang along and danced (badly) to songs he didn't know the words to, he took shots with strangers and got glitter paint on his face and in his hair (he was pretty sure that was Penny's doing), and somehow ended up with enough sand all over his body to cover a whole beach (also Penny's doing – she'd found a secluded, sandy spot that they couldn't help but get a little frisky in. It had been a great idea but also a really bad one. There was sand _everywhere_.)

But it had been exhausting - walking around the massive site, going from one music tent to another and browsing the food, clothing and gift stalls, all in the searing California heat. After a while the constant, thumping bass of the music started to feel like someone was drilling into his ear drums and there had been times when he felt so incredibly out of place among the young and beautiful crowd that he felt insecure about it. Every woman was polished and perfect, and every man was ripped and handsome. This was a crowd of cool kids and he was the odd one out. Like he'd turned up to a party he wasn't invited to.

Penny was right at home amongst them though, as expected, and she was loving every minute of it. The joy was written not only on her face, but in the way walked with a little skip in her step, the way she spoke with that high-pitched shriek and in the way she danced. Leonard didn't care much for dancing, but he loved dancing with her. He loved watching her move so freely, so effortlessly and jubilant. Loved watching the way her body swung in time with the music in a way his just couldn't and the way her hair bounced in its blonde waves with her. Her joy was contagious, and if it hadn't been for that Leonard wouldn't have enjoyed the experience half as much as he had.

It was the last day that ruined it all.

At first, when he woke up with a blinding headache and had to run out to the bathroom to vomit, he'd put it down to a hangover even though he hadn't had all that much to drink the night before. When the lightheaded-ness started and Penny told him that his whole body felt like it was on fire, he knew it was heatstroke – he'd had it enough times in the past to know. His body just wasn't used to being out walking around in the heat all day, and it certainly wasn't used to all the dancing.

It wasn't very often that Leonard got the full benefit of Penny's affectionate side when he was sick. He was ill so frequently that more often than not Penny would tell him to suck it up and the most sympathy he would get is the offer of a cup of tea.

This time was different, and Leonard suspected it was because this whole thing had been her idea and she probably felt responsible for it. She had convinced him to go with her (he still didn't understand why she wanted him there and not Bernadette or Amy) and she had been the one to walk them around every inch of the site.

He didn't blame her, especially since he'd done the exact same thing with her at ComicCon. It just happened that that was indoors and carried a much lesser health risk.

No, he didn't blame her for this, but he did enjoy warmth that came with being fussed over when she left the tent and returned with a gallon of water and a couple of damp towels in a bucket.

"The nurse said these would help. There's one for you to lie on, one to cover yourself with and a little one for your head. The bucket is for you to puke in."

Thankfully, the expensive tent they had chosen to stay in was fitted with air conditioning, so it could have been a lot worse, but he was still uncomfortable.

"You don't have to stay you know." Leonard told her after she'd covered his face, neck and arms with soothing Aloe Vera and settled on one of the wicker chairs inside the tent.

"You're sick, I don't want to leave you here by yourself. What if your fever gets worse or something? You can barely get out of bed, what if you need something?"

The concern was sweet, but Leonard knew neither of them would be particularly happy with Penny hovering over him. It was nice being fussed over for a change, but Leonard knew Penny would get agitated staying inside while all the fun was happening out there, and her agitation would only irritate him and they'd end up fighting. "I have my phone I can call you if I need you."

Her lips twisted with doubt, "You sure?"

"Definitely. You know we'll just drive each other crazy in here and there's not much else you can do to help me now anyway. I have my water and my bucket and my towels." He smiled, to help convince her it was okay to leave, "l'll be fine. Go have fun."

Penny deliberated for a moment more. Battling, he guessed, between the guilt of leaving him and the pull of the fun she could be having out there. "You promise you'll call or text if you need anything?"

"Promise."

A few beats later and she said, "Okay." Penny kneeled down, took the smallest dampened towel from beside him, folded it over his forehead and then kissed him gently on the lips. "Don't try and go anywhere okay? And drink lots of water. I love you."

"I will. Love you, too. Have fun!" Leonard grinned as Penny stood up, threw on her floppy rimmed sunhat that looked far too big for her head and practically hopped with excitement out of the tent.

Once Penny was gone he'd fallen asleep and woke up some hours later somehow feeling worse. Penny texted him a few times during the day to check up on him, and he'd lied each time telling her he was feeling fine and gradually better. Penny had been looking forward to this weekend for so long he didn't want to ruin it further.

In the early afternoon she came back to the tent, a little buzzed and carrying a bag full of stuff. "I brought you snacks!" She exclaimed as she bounded into the tent, her massive sunhat flapping over her face.

Leonard laughed, "Thanks, but I'm not feeling particularly hungry."

"But you said you were feeling better."

"I am." He said, trying to sit up straight to prove his point. "I just think it's better to keep my stomach empty right now. What with all the vomiting."

Penny scrunched up her face, "right, yeah, okay. Well… just try a little bit. Please?"

He did as she asked, managing about half a sandwich and a few chips before admitting defeat, while Penny updated him on her shenanigans of the day with such enthusiasm he was sure she was a little drunk; She was yet to bump into any famous people (boo!), she had somehow squirmed her way to front of one of the performances (yay!) but was pretty sure she'd bruised a rib in the process (ouch!). She even bumped into an old friend from her days in The Cheesecake Factory and then proceeded to ditch her because she was still a 'stuck up bitch with fake teeth and a botched boob job'.

When Penny eventually left again, Leonard couldn't help but feel a little lonely. The life she had filled the sizeable tent with evaporated when she was gone and while he tried to occupy himself by watching something on Netflix on his phone, he could only manage to look at the little screen for a matter of minutes before a searing headache forced him to stop. He slept a little more, but it was becoming uncomfortable lying in that bed and even with the air conditioning on full blast he still felt too hot in that enclosed space. It felt like whatever work the unit was doing to cool down the tent, he was cancelling it out with his burning temperature.

That's when he'd decided to go outside. The sun had set, so it was cooler outside and at least he could watch what was going on. The music from the stages was louder than it was inside, that was the biggest problem. It thumped violently against his already fragile head, so he took his damp towels and found a spot far enough from the stages that the thumping wasn't quite so prolific, but close enough that he wouldn't have a long walk back to the tent.

It was nicer out there. The breeze helped to keep his body cool and being able to watch the people around him kept him occupied and saved him from boredom.

When Penny had woken him, he must have been lying there for hours. The sky was much darker and for the very first time he actually felt mildly better.

"You nearly scared the life out of me, you know." The buzz that Penny had when she'd come into the tent earlier was gone. She looked tired. "How are you feeling?" She touched his forehead with the back of her hand and frowned, "You're still really hot."

"I'm actually feeling better. It's nicer out here than in the tent. The breeze helps. Why did I scare you?"

"Uh, because you left the tent and I couldn't get a hold of you?" She said, a touch of anger in her tone. "What were you thinking leaving your phone in the tent? How was I supposed to know what happened to you when I showed up and you were gone? You could have been rushed to hospital for all I knew."

Leonard almost smiled but he forced it away. It was cute when she worried about him, but he did feel bad about it.

"I'm sorry. I didn't do it on purpose I just forgot about it."

"Fine. I guess I can't stay mad at you if you're sick."

"No, you can't. Come here," Leonard outstretched his hand to tug at her arm and invite her to come closer. An offer she accepted as she shuffled in close and snuggled into the side of him. An arm draping over his stomach and her head resting on his shoulder.

"This is nice," she said after a few minutes of lying there in silence, looking up at the twinkling lights in the sky and the colourful ones shining out from the festival.

It was nice. Lying under the stars like this with her cuddled into him was definitely the highlight of his day.

"I missed you today." She said as her hand played with the material of his t-shirt.

"You did?"

"Why do you sound surprised? Of course I did. Coachella is no fun on your own."

"You sounded like you had fun earlier."

"Well yeah, I did a bit, but I would have preferred to have you there."

"I still don't understand why you wanted to bring me in the first place." He chuckled, "I'm sure you could have chosen someone more suited to this type of thing. Look at me, Sheldon was right, I'm not exactly music festival material."

"No," Penny smiled, turning to look up at him and his gleaming red face, her chin resting on his chest. "I guess you're not. But you're still my first choice."

"Even for this?"

"For everything." She grinned and then corrected herself, "Well, _most_ things. Most things I would rather do with you than anyone else. You're my best friend. _Some_ things I wouldn't. Like shopping. You're no fun to go shopping with. You say things like 'how can shoes cost that much!' and to be honest I don't need that kind of negativity while I'm getting my retail therapy on." Her grin grew wider and she kissed him softly on the lips. "But for nearly everything else you're top choice, baby."

"Aw." Leonard's heart swelled, full to the brim with the love he felt for this woman. Sentiments like that didn't come from Penny often, at least not in such an open and blunt way, so when they did they felt that much more incredible. "That is so sweet."

"I don't know why you're surprised I literally chose to spend the rest of my life with you, you dumb nerd. And anyway, you did enjoy yourself the first couple of nights and don't deny it. You were throwing some serious shapes out there."

"That _is_ true. Maybe I'm more of a music festival person than I thought."

"Yeah. Just next time maybe you don't stay out in the heat quite so long."

"Next time?"

"Hell yeah. We gotta go again I still didn't meet a single Kardashian or Jenner and it's so annoying because I know they're here and there's so many of them!"

Leonard laughed and agreed. He supposed he did owe her considering the high number of lectures he'd taken her to that she wasn't all that interested in, and then there was ComicCon and WhoCon that he'd somehow talked her into going to as well.

That's just the type of married couple they were, he guessed. The type that drag their other halves along to things their partners don't particularly want to go to because they know they'd enjoy themselves even more if they were there.

Because they're each other's first choice.

* * *

**P.s. Yeah i know the end was super fluffy but i couldnt help it!**


End file.
